And as people have asked me about it, on Twitter or via email, I’ve told them that it still works.īut it’s been a while since I’ve written on this topic formally. Since then, I’ve tested this scenario on a very regular basis, probably roughly once a month. Over two years after Microsoft first enabled this functionality, the answer is a resounding yes.Īnd I can think of a number of reasons why one might need to do so.Īs noted, Microsoft first introduced this capability over two years ago, and in doing so it erased what had been one of the early install/activation issues with the then-new Windows 10.Īlmost a year later, I reported that this capability-which was supposed to be temporary, by the way– still worked. Readers routinely ask me whether it’s still possible to clean install Windows 10 with an unused Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 product key.